I could see his eyes just beneath the brim of his hat and immediately realized today was not the day I would earn my sombrero.
I pulled on the gear shift and pushed it into park.
For what felt like an entire California growing season, I walked over to Pancho.
“Amigo, what took so long? I told you to come straight here. The instructions were simple. How is it possible someone could be so...”
“Go do something you can actually handle. Cómo es posible? … Andale. Inside.”
That went well.
The phone started ringing.
Claudia, not far behind, walked over to Pancho.
“Hola Pancho.”
Pancho leaned into the truck to inspect the bags.
“Bueno, Claudia. Y Luisa? Como esta?”
“Bueno, Pancho. Bueno. Luisa is coping but Eduardo is still Eduardo. I won’t let you down.” She smiled “Guadalajara is beautiful. Everything is in order.”
“I understand. Carlos should be here shortly. Wait with the truck.”
Pancho walked into the room.
“Si, Thank you Carlos. We just arrived.” I hung up the phone.
“Amigo, you did a good job. It wasn’t an easy assignment. Next time come straight back. Claudia is… how do you say…de armas tomar.” Pancho grinned. “Can you call Carlos back and tell him that we await his arrival.”
“Sí… entiendo. Gracias.”
What the hell did I just say? ¡Vamos!